Mari et le chat d'ombre
by TheCreativeCasseroles
Summary: One day, Marinette found something that won't leave her alone. Now she can't become Ladybug while she has her new shadow. At least there isn't any akumas to ruin everything.
1. Prologue

_**Prologue**_

The place was dark and cold. _It_ hated dark and cold. Dark was safety, but cold brought unpleasant feelings. The cold brought feelings _It_ could not understand. The dark creature must find a way out of the horrible room.

 _It_ saw an open hole in the wall _(_ It _faintly hears the word "window")_ and wondered if _It_ can leave though it.

 _It_ went up to the hole, seeing the outside world. The sky was dark with few lights scattered throughout _(stars)_ one giant light _(moon)_ with the occasional fluff drifting by. There were many other lights that were lit and moving on the earth below. _It_ turned Its head to see more.

That's when something caught _Its_ eye.

A faint light was shining in the distance, yet _It_ could feel warmth and the feeling of welcoming from it. The light was obviously different than all the others.

 _It_ needed to see the light. _It_ needed to know if the light will be kind to _It_. _It_ needed the light.

Without any other thought, _It_ jumped out and landed feet below. _It_ sunk into the shadows and left _Its_ prison. _It_ was free.

 _It_ will see the light.


	2. Chapter 1

_**Chapter one**_

Today was a Saturday which meant Marinette Dupain-Chen had a half day. So Marinette spent her time helping her parents' bakery and doing homework. There was some time to talk to Alya, but it was mostly baking. It was really nice that there wasn't any akumas running out and about as well.

Business was slowing down, the sun was starting to set, and the shop day was coming down to a close.

"Thank you for all the help, Marinette," Sabine smiled at her daughter.

"You can go out for a bit, as long as you have your phone on you," Tom bent down to kiss the petite teen.

"Thank you!" Marinette went up and pulled her parents into a hug. She hurried up to her room to clean herself up, grab her sketchbook and pencils, as well as her purse that held Tikki.

"Where are we going?" Tikki flew up to ask her chosen as she was getting her stuff.

"The catacombs," Marinette simply said. Unknown to her, Tikki's eyes went wide.

"Why the catacombs?" The kwami questioned, obviously confused. Usually Marinette would go to the park or the eiffel tower. This was new.

"Because I want to make something for Juleka as a surprise. And what better place for inspiration than the catacombs?" Marinette said as she smiled, "Although, it is going to be a little creepy with all those bones," she gave a slight shiver at the thought.

"Don't worry Marinette! It's not like they could hurt you," Tikki tried to comfort the teen.

"I know," long fingers opened a purse to fill with cookies, "but the thought still bothers me. But this _is_ for Juleka, so I'm going to have to get over it."

The little god smiled at her hero before flying into the purse.

And with that, the duo was off.

It took a while to get to get to the catacombs. The traffic had been horrible, so now the sun was officially gone.

Great.

She had to pay 16 € and had to wait twenty minutes to get in.

Cue stars.

"Finally! I made it!" Marinette exclaimed once she set foot into the actual tomb. The schoolgirl began to walk around with a tour group, ignoring the tourists. She was a girl on a mission.

Marinette took note of the skulls in the walls, the miscellaneous bones on the shelves, the crosses, and the designs that some of the bones made. Ideas came and went onto paper. Dresses, skirts, shirts, pants, leggings, shoes, hats, and much more. Some were scrapped, some were a 'maybe', but none of them seemed to scream 'Juleka loves me!'

"A trench coat just might work," she mumbled to herself, unaware that the group left without her. However, her idea for a trench coat was the key to open a dam. Outfits flowed out from her fingertips to make rivers, streams, oceans, lakes, and ponds.

Marinette was officially in the zone. So much she didn't know she was being watched.

Green eyes were devouring the sight, taking in any and all movement from the girl. With quiet steps, the eyes closed in, not wanting to disturb such a moment. The eyes have been watching the French-Chinese teen ever since the tour group left her alone. Actually the eyes have been following her for a while since she was in the group. However, the eyes came into the open more than it originally was when the group left.

The eyes did not like the fact that she was alone.

The eyes did not like the fact she was defenseless.

The eyes _will_ protect her from harm.

But for now the eyes will try to be with her without being noticed. And that was ok to the eyes.

"This is perfect!" Marinette jumped with joy at her outfit. She quickly put her sketchbook and utensils away, as content as content could be.

Until she realized she was no longer part of the tour.

Pink lips frowned momentarily. Marinette then sighed and turned around. She was most likely going to get lost if she continued forward, so retracing steps it is.

The eyes followed her as she went back. The eyes were glad that she was leaving this place behind. The eyes didn't know what dangers could hid in such a place, but it mattered not for the eyes would do everything the eyes could do to keep her safe.

Maybe if she saw the eyes save her the eyes would be rewarded. Or better yet, loved.

The eyes purred at the thought.

Marinette continued her way, never catching a hint of green or a wave of a tail. When she made it back to the opening, she explained what had happened to the people who was running the tours. Thankfully they understood and let her on her way home.

They also gave her a discount for the next time she ever decided to have a tour of the catacombs.

Her walk home was uneventful, her parents were happy for her to be home, and Marinette knew how to end her day.

Marinette was singing and dancing to a new song that just couldn't leave her head in her pajamas. It wasn't Jagged Stone, no, but something more… calm. Like something from a ballet. The young fashion designer heard it constantly lately (it was even playing in the bakery a couple of times) and she finally succumbed to it.

So there Marinette was, having fun while Tikki slept, not having a care in the world. Well, that was until she felt herself bump her back into something she knew did _not_ belong in her room.

Ever so slowly, Marinette turned around to face whoever or whatever was in her room.

 _It_ was tall, taller than her _dad_ but not hitting the ceiling, _It_ was so dark, _It_ almost blended into any shadow that was in the room, _Its_ eyes were green like a cat's yet held an unnatural tint to it and _Its_ sharp pupils were trained on the girl. _Its_ shape was remanence to that of a cat, but the shape was wrong. The snout was longer, it looked like there was no nose nor mouth, just snout; the ears were tall and wide, a slender neck connected the head to a slim body that had its ribcage protruding out, but there was no bones in the body (or at least it didn't look like it) and the way it was proportioned, this seemed… normal for the creature. Long, gangly arms widen at the forearm and the "hands" or "paws" were giant with long claws that acted as fingers. The legs and "feet" looked more cat like than their upper counterparts. A long, slick, tail flickered behind it.

Marinette tripped over backwards.

 _Its_ eyes seemed to widen and _Its_ pupils contracted slightly. Giant hands shot out and grabbed her.

Everything was put on pause. Wide blue eyes stared at wide green eyes. Wide green eyes bore into wide blue eyes.

Slowly, _It_ stood Marinette up and took a step back.

Nothing moved.

 _'_ _Is this an akuma?'_ Thought Marinette to herself. And why wouldn't _It_ be? There was no way _It_ could be another Miraculous holder because Miraculous holders _do not_ turn into giant creatures. _It_ had to be an akuma since they're the only thing to change people into creatures.

 _It_ slowly blink.

She slowly blink in return.

 _It_ started to purr.

Marinette tilted her head in confusion. Why was _It_ purring? And why was _It_ here?

 _It_ copied her.

She lifted her hand and waved.

 _It_ did the same.

"Um, hello?" Marinette called out to _It_ with a soft and slightly unsure tone of voice.

More purring.

Just who was this and why was _It_ here?

Wait.

Marinette's eyes widen as she realized that she was calling the akuma victim an ' _it_ '. That won't do at all.

"Can you speak?" She asked, hoping that she would get some sort of answer.

Cue purrs.

"Can you at least understand me?" At this point Marinette wasn't expecting any type of answer. What she did get, however, is two curious blue eyes that belong to a small, cute, god like being.

Tikki saw the akuma and immediately hid.

Now Marinette was sort of out of ideas. So naturally she did the first thing that came to mind.

She held out her arm to beckon the akuma closer.

With smooth, graceful movements, the cat akuma went on all fours and began to rub _It_ - _their_ head against Marinette's hand.

A wave of chills ran down her back as she made contact with _I_ - _them_ (she really needs to remind herself to use _they/them_ pronouns for the akuma). _They_ weren't covered with fur nor hair. The thing that was covering _them_ was slick, smooth, and oddly wispy. Like it wasn't exactly there. It was almost as if _they_ were covered in shadows. Well, if shadows had a consistency in the first place.

"Good kitty," she cooed even if her face showed she was both interested and slightly uncomfortable with the situation. Of course this brought on a new wave of purrs. Next thing the young teen knew, the giant black cat was weaving around and in between her legs.

Just like a regular house cat, with all the head rubbing and everything. The poor girl had to use all of her strength to stand up.

"Ok ok I get it," small giggles bubbled up. This seemed to encourage the cat.

Marinette just smiled at the akuma's antics before rubbing _their_ head.

 _'_ _Just who are you? And why are you here?'_ Marinette thought to herself, still confused. Fortunately for her, this akuma seems pretty calm and doesn't seem bent on revenge. Actually _they're_ kinda like Nathanaël when he was an akuma.

Unfortunately it didn't look like there was any object on _them_. There must be, but it was hidden very well.

(To be honest, Marinette is slightly surprised with herself being this calm. She must be in shock or something. Or maybe it had to do with that calm song still playing. On repeat.)

So now Marinette was making a list of what her life has come to (or at least how her day has come to) while scratching behind an ear of a cat akuma. While she was making said list, she was wondering if she is the reason for _this_ akuma.

It's true she made both Max and Lila into akuma's, but she wasn't sure if she made any more.

 _'_ _I was home for the rest of the day, and I didn't really interact with anyone else during school. Maybe this_ is _like another Nathanaël?'_ As far as she knew, there wasn't any other guys that had a thing for her. A girl maybe? No, Marinette was sure that the girls either had a boyfriend, girlfriend, or just wasn't into the whole love deal.

Maybe this person just wanted to be her friend.

Now the question is how or _who_ made this person into an akuma.

 _'_ _Most likely Cholé,'_ Marinette mused.

Idly Marinette noted that the cat had three whiskers on each side of _their_ face.

The teen sighed at the fact that she's apparently befriended an akuma. A cat one at that.

 **BEEP BEEP**

The akuma jumped up in surprise, pupils turning into slits, growling at whatever was making that horrid noise, taking _them_ out of their petting heaven.

Mari rolled her eyes at the cat as she walked up to her phone to silence it. Earlier she had set the alarm to let her know that she needed to go to bed at 10:00pm. The poor girl wanted some sleep for once. She hoped that this alarm would help get her sleep schedule back on track.

It's somewhat working.

"Silly kitty, it's just my phone," she giggled at the cat's confused tilted head. Marinette paused for a moment.

 _'_ _What am I going to do with the akuma? I can't transform in front of_ them _, and I can't find_ their _object. So far I doubt they're going to leave me alone. I can't let_ them _stay in the house and I can't let_ them _go outside. Who knows what destruction_ they'll _cause… How did_ they _get in anyway?'_ Marinette sighed at her predicament.

A light nudge brought Mari back into reality.

There _they_ were. Sitting in all _their_ glory, was the cat akuma. And in _their_ eyes was clear worry.

Cue heart melting.

"I can't leave you alone can I?" A small smile wormed its way onto her face as she shook her head.

The cat perked up as _they_ sensed Marinette's change in mood.

So Marinette went to turn off her light and go to bed as the weight of the night finally fell on her. Only she was momentarily stopped by hulking figure.

The akuma grew in the darkness of the room, and it completely blended to _their_ soundings bar eyes. If _they_ didn't have _their_ eyes open, then Marinette was sure she would have thought that _they_ had disappeared.

"Huh," was the only thing she could say with her own eyes wide. She blinked a couple of times before making her way to her chest that was next to her chaise lounge. She didn't exactly have a lock for her trapdoor that led to the rest of her house, so the chest would have to do. Marinette _really_ didn't want the akuma to find/be found by her parents.

After lugging the chest onto the door, Marinette walked up the steps to her bed.

"Kitty," softly her voice carried into the akuma's ears. _They_ realized that she was calling for _them_ and practically flowed up to her. At this point she wouldn't be surprised if _they did_ flowed up.

Marinette smiled at the akuma as she snuggled herself into her blanket.

"Good night," she yawned.

 _'_ _I think I'm too tired to deal with this,'_ was Marinette's last thoughts before sleep took her to the land of dreams.

The cat akuma watched over her, making sure her sleep was not disturbed.

* * *

**Hi! OK, so first things off, I don't have a schedule for this fic, so I want you to know don't expect a lot of rapid fire updates. This is my first Ladybug fic that I uploaded so please let me know if anyone seems ooc. And if Marinette does seem ooc when she meets the akuma, understand that she'll properly react in a later chapter. Pretty sure she's in shock and/or thinks that this is a very realistic dream. Hope you enjoyed this chapter!**


	3. Chapter 2

**_Chapter two_**

 _It_ was happy. The light accepted _It_. Of course, the light was on edge due to _It_ , but the light came around.

The light was a what the little voice in _Its_ head called a human girl. However, the strangest thing is, _It_ feels like _It_ knows her. But that's impossible. _It_ never meet her before. All _It_ knew was that room. In fact, _It_ was pretty sure _It_ was created in that room. So how did _It_ know her?

 _It_ didn't and _It_ was only feeling that so that maybe _It_ could be closer to her.

 _It_ was nothing.

But _she_ made _It_ feel like something.

 _It_ had found her, the wonderful light, among other… humans within a sacred place for the departed. _It_ was amazed at how attached _It_ became when _It_ first saw her. _It_ felt such a pull to her, to protect her, to make her happy, that _It_ felt like _It_ wasn't an _It_ but something-some _one_ else.

She must never be harmed, _It_ had decided.

 _It_ had watched her create images upon pages and was both amazed and proud. Why wouldn't such a light do such impressive things?

 _It_ had followed her to her domain, daring to slip into her shadow, _becoming_ her shadow. _It_ wasn't sure if _It_ was worthy to do what _It_ had done.

When _It_ saw her greet what _It_ assumed to be her reasoning for existence, _It_ felt like _It_ should be honored. _It_ saw how they interacted, how beautiful, how _warm_ , and _inviting_ , _It_ felt not only happiness for the light, but envy for never having anything like that. But then _It_ shook _Its_ head to get rid of such thoughts.

 _It_ did not deserve anything like that. Just being with the light was enough.

Then she started to take off her coverings. _It_ couldn't see her like that! From what _It_ had gathered from others, _It_ knew that humans use the coverings and assumed that having said coverings off was not a good thing. (Seeing a young one trying to take their coverings off and then getting scolded helped.)

A soft noise filled the air brought _It_ back to the light and saw _another_ amazing sight.

She was dancing and making a pleasant noise that followed the soft noise.

It was if _It_ was in a trance. Perhaps it was another power the light held. _It_ wouldn't be surprised if it was.

Slowly _It_ rose up from the shadows, always behind her, as to make sure she wouldn't be scared.

But then she bumped into _It._ And she was scared. _It_ became afraid.

She fell backwards, _It_ went into action.

They made eye contact, and _It_ had never felt so alive until that moment.

But then _It_ realized that _It_ was a monster, a being of darkness, and she was human, a being of light.

 _It_ knew that she would never be comfortable with _It_ , but _It_ still clung onto the hope that she was. So _It_ slowly blinked, showing that _It_ was comfortable with her.

And then the most amazing thing happened! She slowly blinked back!

Purrs had erupted from _It_ , so very pleased with the new development. So pleased, in fact, that _It_ copied her movements. And she made more noises that felt nice on _Its_ ears.

All was good.

But then she held out her hand! Immediately _It_ went and rubbed her. _It_ was sure _It_ was in heaven.

Unfortunately for _It_ heaven was cut short by what _It_ deemed as _the most annoying sound in existence._

 _It_ resents that sound.

Eventually the light did some sort of nightly ritual and went to sleep. She even invited _It_ to stand guard.

Now here _It_ was. Sitting down next to her sleeping form, making sure nothing comes to ruin everything. _Like that stupid noise_.

 _It_ , at some point during the night, came to realize how much _It_ worships her. And then _It_ realized why wouldn't _It_? She was light and warmth, _It_ was dark and cold.

She invited all into said light and warmth. Even _It._

 _It_ never had any of this, and she gave it to _It._

So _It_ would do _Its_ best to have her stay the way she it.

Only _It_ was getting a little tired. Surely a small nap would be ok?

 _It_ lay down, curling around the light.

Even in sleep _It_ will keep her safe.

* * *

 **OK to make things clear, there is a Chat Noir, and that's Adrien.**


End file.
